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weird facts
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - An argument between two debate coaches that was caught on video was not the sharp-witted dialogue typically associated with college debate teams. Instead, the two traded profanity-laced barbs and one of them pulled down his shorts, exposing his underwear.
An eight-minute segment of the argument, in which each cursed repeatedly and one student near the camera can be heard crying, was posted on YouTube on Aug. 2 and has garnered more than 100,000 hits.
"In 18 years of taking part in debates, I have never seen an incident like this one," said Gordon Stables, first vice president of the Cross Examination Debate Association, which sponsored the March tournament in Wichita, Kan., where the argument took place.
Stables, who is also director of the University of Southern California's debate squad, said the association was investigating.
In the video, Fort Hays State University debate coach William Shanahan is shown arguing with Shanara Reid-Brinkley, debate coach at the University of Pittsburgh, during the competition's quarterfinals.
The argument, which appears to be at least in part about race, is punctuated with frequent cursing and name-calling. Shanahan, who is white, and Reid-Brinkley, who is black, scream criticisms about one another's body language during students' debates.
At one point Shanahan screams as he jumps up, then yanks his shorts down to his knees and points his rear end at Reid-Brinkley.
Phone messages left for Reid-Brinkley and Shanahan were not returned Thursday. Officials at Pitt and Fort Hays State, a university of about 9,000 students in western Kansas, said they were investigating.
[Via Yahoo.news]
Friday, August 15, 2008
Weird facts - Debate coaches lose cool, 1 pulls down his pants
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Weird Facts - Sweet Home Alabama...England?
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weird facts
LONDON (Reuters) - Council chiefs in Birmingham were left red-faced when they mistakenly used a picture of their U.S. namesake in Alabama on thousands of official leaflets.
Pamphlets about recycling in the West Midlands bore an image showing the skyline of the city in the Deep South.
Under the headline "Thank You Birmingham!," the picture showed office blocks in the U.S. city, rather than its own distinctive Rotunda tower and the curvy Selfridges store.
The council said it had made a mistake, but had no plans to recall the leaflets.
"We accept that the wrong photo was used but the text and detail contained in the leaflet is wholly correct which is the most important message as we strive to further improve our green credentials," the council said Thursday.
[Via Yahoo.news]
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Tuesday, August 12, 2008
R.I. man finds cocaine in used police cruiser | Weird Facts
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weird facts — A Burrillville town councilor got more than he bargained for when he bought a used police cruiser at auction. Kevin Blais bought the 2004 Ford Crown Victoria in an online auction from the Hartford, Conn., public works department.
He was cleaning it last week when he noticed a cracked area on the one-piece molded seat assembly.
When he removed the seat assembly to clean the floor, he found a plastic bag containing a substance that local police later confirmed was cocaine.
Blais speculates that a suspect stuffed the drugs through the crack to prevent police from finding them. Burrillville Lt. Kevin San Antonio says Hartford police were "apologetic" when he told them of the discovery.
Hartford police spokeswoman Nancy Mulroy said Friday that based on their past experience with drug suspects, Blais' speculation is almost certainly correct.
"It's not unusual that perpetrators or suspects try to hide stuff in the cruisers before they go to booking, where they know they'll be searched," she said.
[Via - WRAL]
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Saturday, August 9, 2008
Flu poses greater risk than terrorism | Weird Facts
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weird facts
A flu pandemic poses greater threat to Britain than terrorism, government risk assessment to warn
National Risk Register illustration of the "high consequence risks" facing the UK
Hundreds of thousands of Britons living abroad would return to the UK if there were a worldwide flu pandemic, the government suggests today.
A Cabinet Office report, which identifies a global flu pandemic as the most serious threat facing Britain, says that officials are drawing up plans that would help them cope if some of the 12 million Britons living abroad were to return home to increase their chances of surviving in the event of a worldwide emergency.
The report, the "national risk register", lists all the most significant risks facing Britain over the next five years. The government has published the information in this form for the first time to help organisations and individuals take appropriate precautions.
Gordon Brown promised that the register would be published when he unveiled his national security strategy earlier this year.
The register does not rank the risks it mentions in order of seriousness. But a chart showing risks according to the relative likelihood of them happening and the relative impact they would have suggests that a flu pandemic scores highest when impact and likelihood are both taken into account.
However, the chart does not include the threat posed by terrorists using a nuclear device because there is no historical precedent for this kind of attack.
The report says that flu pandemics occurred three times in the 20th century and that experts agree that there is a "high probability" of another occurring.
The World Health Organisation estimates that between 2 million and 7.4 million people would die globally.
Within the UK, up to half of the population could become infected and between 50,000 and 750,000 people could die as a result, the report said.
"Normal life is likely to face wider social and economic disruption, significant threats to the continuity of essential services, lower production levels, shortages and distribution difficulties," it says.
"The emergence overseas of an influenza pandemic or other widespread infectious disease may result in a proportion of the British nationals who are not normally resident in the UK (approximately 12 million) choosing to return to the UK. Some returning British nationals would not have the means to support themselves and their return would have a short-term but significant impact upon areas in which they settle."
On terrorism, the report confirms that the national threat assessment currently stands at "severe", meaning that some form of attack is highly likely.
"Many of those networks and individuals who are judged to pose a terrorist threat share an ambition to cause large numbers of casualties without warning," the report says.
It says that the transport system seems to be the most likely target for a terrorist attack, with rail and underground stations "popular targets". But, for any individual, the likelihood of being attacked is "still very low".
[Via guardian.co.uk]
Friday, August 8, 2008
Weird facts: Police reopen 7,000 cases after DNA error
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CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australian police will re-examine 7,000 crimes solved through DNA evidence after a mistake forced detectives to free a suspect wrongly accused of murder.
Police in the southern city of Melbourne withdrew charges against Russell John Gesah, accused in July of the 1984 murders of a 35-year-old mother and her nine-year-old daughter.
"It's obviously an embarrassment and we would rather not be in this position," Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Simon Overland was quoted as saying in Australian media on Thursday.
DNA is supposed to be the most accurate method of proving guilt through evidence samples taken at crime scenes, with the likelihood of matching genetic markers among people said to be around one in 7 billion or greater.
Police last month said a DNA sample taken from the murder scene, where Margaret Tapp was strangled and her daughter Seana raped and later killed, matched Gesah after comparison with 400,000 other DNA profiles on a national database.
Gesah was arrested and faced court, but a later check found the DNA evidence used against him was taken elsewhere and mistakenly tested with samples from the Tapp murder scene.
Overland said every crime solved by DNA in the state since the testing technology was introduced 20 years ago would now be reviewed to check no other bungles had occurred.
"We need to refine our processes and our practices, and that is now happening as a result of this case," he said.
Victorian Law Institute spokesman Michael Brett Young said Gesah had been wrongfully painted as a villain because of police mistakes, possibly damaging public faith in the legal system at a time when corruption scandals were already undermining authorities.
"Really he's been convicted in the court of public opinion due to the actions of the police and the media," Young said on Thursday.
Criminal lawyers said the mistake would almost guarantee future challenges to the accuracy of police DNA evidence.
(Reporting by Rob Taylor; Editing by David Fogarty)
[Via Reuters]
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Thursday, August 7, 2008
How to Arrange an Art Collection
You've plunked down your hard-earned cash on another acquisition for your home museum. Now take the time to organize and protect your new treasure so that its value will only appreciate.
Step1
Read 56 End Collection Chaos. Take an inventory of all items in the collection. Include the title of the piece, artist's name, date of issue, current condition, when and where you purchased it, purchase price and current value.
Step2
Look into software to help you organize, catalog and manage collections. One example, Art and Antiques Organizer Deluxe (primasoft.com), is geared toward private and corporate collectors, small galleries, artists and dealers.
Step3
Protect artwork from heat sources such as chimneys and vents as well as direct sunlight when choosing display locations. Also beware of humidity and dampness or any area with fluctuating temperatures, such as a doorway or outside wall.
Step4
Find proper Art Storage for pieces that are not currently on display or that you'll be rotating in and out of display areas. Avoid basements, attics and garages, which have moisture and temperature issues. An interior closet on the main floor is a good choice. Otherwise, contact special service regarding professional storage.
How to Get Started In eCommerce To Build An Online Store
The basics for opening an ecommerce website to make money online.
Step1
The first step to starting your own ecommerce site will be the product. There are many factors in determining the products you will offer. You must decide what you are interested in, and will remain interested in for the long term. Also, pricing is a major consideration. If you pay too much for items, you'll never see a profit. Shipping times are also key, especially if you are not using a drop shipping company as your supplier.
Step2
The next step will be choosing and registering a domain name. Use a name that is short and easy to remember, this will help customers find you and return easily. There are many options for registering your name, such as godaddy, that is very inexpensive.
Step3
You site must look professional and be Very Easy to use. Even with the best products at the lowest prices, if your site looks sloppy or is hard to use, you will lose a lot of potential business. So it's time to go and check out the experts: Storesonline Ecommerce Solution. They will most likely solve any your problems so there will be no need to risk it all by relying only on yourself.
Step4
With the site, you will need an shopping cart option, whether you use paypal, google checkout, or another company is a decision that will be made after research and looking for features that are needed for your particular situation.
